IPBES: Day Five

Many significant issues remained unresolved at the close of the plenary session on Day five of IPBES.

Plenary sessions reviewed progress in contact groups, with still more work required to achieve consensus on key issues discussed in contact groups about the Rules of Procedure (consensus, admission of observers, and status of regional economic integration organisations such as the EU), the institutional arrangements between IPBES and the UN organisations (UNEP, UNDP, FAO, UNESCO), and the budget.

IPBES delegates huddle for informal discussion on the election of the IPBES chair. Photo from IISD Reporting Services

The Work Programme contact group did finish its discussion, and the final membership of the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel was announced, after much negotiation within regions over the week.

Further discussion was raised to ensure all nominees for the MEP were included in an expert roster. General conclusions were that the regional selection process had not resulted in an Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP) that reflected disciplinary or gender balance, and that IPBES could learn from the first nomination process to develop one that better coordinated between regions to maximize the functionality of the MEP. The issue of chair of the IPBES Bureau (and the current plenary) session) remained unresolved when the Plenary session closed near 11pm, with regional consultations continuing late into the evening, and finally coming to a consensus of one three-year Chair (rather than a compromise between the two regions that nominated chairs of either a co-chair agreement, or a shared term).

With respect to observer status and participation (including scientific organisations like SCB), concerns were raised that a lack of resolution of Rules of Procedure on how to admit observers potentially limited the ability of the Platform to admit ‘new’ observers at the IPBES-2 Plenary session. As such, observer groups present in Bonn all confirmed that their credentials were in place, to avoid challenges with attendance at IPBES-2 should no consensus be reached on admission of observers here in Bonn. A legal review will hopefully determine that existing language allows for admission of new observers in the absence of a final decision.

A note of congratulations from our delegation to one of our SCB Board members Andras Baldi (Europe) on his election to the MEP! Click here for a complete list of MEP members.